BJP MP seeks action against portrayal of Padmavati “wrongly”

NEW DELHI, Feb 9: Days after violence marred the shooting of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s movie Padmavati in Jaipur, the issue figured in Lok Sabha today with a BJP MP demanding tough legal action for portraying the Rajput queen “wrongly”.
BJP MP from Rajasthan C P Joshi said Padmavati was known for saving her honour by jumping into a pier, but the Director has portrayed her as a lover of the attacker.
“I demand that filming the character in this manner be barred and tough legal action be taken for such action,” Joshi said during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha.
Last month, Bhansali was allegedly roughed up by members of a Rajput community group, who also stopped the shooting of the film by damaging the sets at Jaigarh Fort, alleging that the director was “distorting facts” in the movie which is about Alauddin Khilji’s obsession with Rani Padmavati.
Among other issues, concern was also raised in the House over the new US administration overhauling the work visa programmes like H-1B and L1, a move that will adversely hit the lifeline of Indian tech firms and professionals in the US.
Jayadev Galla (TDP) demanded intervention in the matter by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “There should have been some announcement regarding this in the Budget. The Prime Minister should intervene since he has developed a good rapport with the US administration and discuss the matter,” Galla said.
E T Mohammed Basheer (IUML) raised the issue of Najeeb Ahmed, a student of Jawaharlal Nehru University, who has been missing since October 15 last year, and said nothing has been done on the issue.
“Delhi Police has not made any effective inquiry into the matter. I urge the Government to take steps to find out Najeeb Ahmed and refer his case to CBI. Effective inquiry should be carried out to punish the culprit,” Basheer said.
Dhruv Narayan (Congress) drew the attention of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar and said the Centre has not released the sanctioned fund of Rs 1,782 crore to drought-hit Karnataka.
Kumar, who belongs to Karnataka, said Modi has already met Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and after that the amount due from State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) has been cleared. “The sanctioned money will be released forthwith. Government of India is fully with the farmers of Karnataka and will extend all assistance,” Kumar said. (PTI)